It is easy to slip into routines of noise and consumption of information and entertainment.

Listening to a podcast while doing dishes.

Watching a movie while folding laundry.

Scrolling social media while waiting in line.

Music while driving.

Before I know it, each pocket of silence can be filled.

Last year for Lent, I chose to "turn down the volume" by offering aspects such as movie streaming services, music, and podcasts.

As I looked forward to Sundays, the mini-breaks during the penitential season, I realized that I was loving the sense of containing some forms of consumption to one day/week but that I did not necessarily want it to be on Sunday.

Maybe after Lent I will carry forward some of the practices to be the norm but shift my one day a week to Saturdays, I thought.

There were other aspects that I reflected on how it was not about transferring the day but about recognizing they were not serving me well in general. I longed to simply phase them out.

Of all the "noise" I was surrendering and then revisiting in small doses during the season, there were those rare pieces that resonated with the sense of Resurrection joy (hello music by my favorite Catholic singers).

If we are abstaining from something but then reintegrating it on a Sunday, it helps to consider whether it truly helps us to live well.

Questions for Reflection:

As we prepare to enter into Holy Week and transition towards the Easter season, I invite you to reflect:

• How did your Lenten offering unfold this year?

• What did you learn from the experience?

• Is there something you would like to intentionally moderate based on recognizing it was beneficial to decrease? What role would you like it to have in your life?

• Is there anything you would like to strive to eliminate/mostly eliminate from your life?

• Did you learn anything about what helps you to experience deep joy?

As you reflect, you can ask, "Jesus what do you want me to carry forward?"

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